Cuts to other scholarships and grants could be considered without additional funding.
Photo illustration by Justin Morrison/Inside Higher Ed | DenisKot and EyeEm Mobile GmbH/iStock/Getty Images
Mississippi is facing a $7.3 million financial aid deficit, which could result in as many as 27,000 students receiving less aid than anticipated in spring 2027, Mississippi Today reported .
State aid officials attributed the gap to a 2025 change in how the funds were distributed, expanding eligibility from students taking at least 15 credits to those taking 12 or more. State lawmakers also raised the income threshold for the state’s Higher Education Legislative Plan, a need-based grant.
As a result of those changes, as well as the simplification of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, more students are now applying and qualifying for state aid.
Without additional funding, the state may have to limit the number of students who can access a scholarship for former foster youth and could have to decrease award amounts for other grants.
Mississippi is just one of several states that have faced student aid deficits in recent years.